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Date: 2/27/2024
GRANBY — A fire on Red Fire Farm on Feb. 17 has led to major damages and losses as the barn was destroyed as well as the farms main retail store and pick up location.
Sarah Voiland and her husband, Ryan, own the farm at 7 Carver St., as well as locations in Springfield and Montague. Sarah Voiland told Reminder Publishing the loss was “a huge shock” as not only was the historic barn burnt down, but damages on material alone from inside the barn is estimated to cost $170,000 and included hand tools, potting soil, irrigation equipment, pallets of packing boxes, deer fencing and display coolers.
“We had a lot of supplies and equipment and other things in the barn,” she said.
The fire was caught by a staff member leaving the farm for the day around 1 p.m. who noticed the flames. The Voilands quickly arrived and stayed throughout the day and into the late night as firefighters combated the fire until it was put out.
“Pretty much by the time we got here it was mostly burnt,” Voiland added.
The cause of fire is still yet to be determined by investigators. The farms heavy machinery such as its tractors were parked outside and avoided damage. Voiland did clarify that while this tragic event has occurred, the larger greenhouses at the site are now full of green sprouting plants and the fields remain fertile. Plans are to do what they can in the meantime as they work out of the fire and reform the site.
Voiland explained that her husband began farming when he was a middle school student living with his parents in Montague. He has owned the Granby property since 2001 and it is the farm’s main retail location. In total, they farm about 100 acres in Granby and more than 100 acres in Montague.
Red Fire Farm got its name from two different sources. The first coming from the strand of the vegetable called red fire lettuce, but the other coming after a 1922 lightning strike that hit and ignited an old barn on the property.
The 1922 barn that was erected after its predecessor 100 years ago is the replacement barn that has now burned. It had become a treasure for the farm as it was built with chestnut beams, lumber that is essentially irreplaceable for a new construction.
“We aren’t entirely sure what it’s going to take to replace everything. It’s just a really historical, beautiful, huge old barn and to actually build something of that size now might be in the realm of a $1 million-ish,” Voiland said.
She did clarify that while this tragic event has occurred, the larger greenhouses at the site are now full of green sprouting plants and the fields remain fertile.
“Through all this we know that all our fields are okay for production so we will be able to grow soon and eventually be able to have the store up and running back to where we want it to be,” Voiland said.
While they are still waiting for a determination on the cause for the fire, she said any help from the community that has supported the farm and family for so long would be much appreciated as she expects insurance to only help with so much.
Voiland added that they have heard from many people looking to help, including Big Y Foods, which offered a mobile refrigeration unit to temporarily replace coolers lost to the fire. She said an easy way of giving direct support to the farm is through purchasing a farm share.
“Now is a good time to sign up for shares that we have. We have fresh produce, and we will do our best to have as much a good variety of things we were able to sell before,” Voiland said. “I think right now in order to rebuild something that resembles what we had we are really looking for help from the public.”
The Voilands have started a GoFundMe that those looking to support can donate to. The fundraiser’s goal is at $200,000 and as of press time — only five days after the fire — it had raised $84,394.
Voiland added that those who want to help further can also visit Red Fire Farm at one of its winter farmers markets in Springfield and Northampton. She said they can also buy Red Fire Farm produce at local stores such as Cornucopia in Northampton.
While facing major adversity from this fire, the Voilands had tried to remain optimistic for the farm’s future, especially with the community support they have received.
“We’ve been through a lot, like really a lot of things like raining, flooding, droughts, a fire, but we keep coming through. We want to keep coming through because we want to feed people,” Voiland said. “We have a fire and passion for the work that we do and heck if a fire is going to stop that.”